STAPHYLINID^. 165 



than the prothorax; abdomen at base as wide as the elytra, very slightly 

 tapering, with unusually thickly margined sides, the fifth tergite almost three- 

 fourths as wide as the first and scarcely one-half longer than the fourth. 

 Length 1.3 mm.; width 0.38 mm. Massachusetts (Taunton). 



This species is aberrant in the feebly tapering, finely, evenly and 

 very closely punctate abdomen, deep and rather narrow apical 

 sinuses of the elytra and somewhat shorter antenna?. 



Ancillota n. gen. 



The body is fusiform and convex, the hypomera strongly inflexed 

 and invisible from the sides, the middle coxae approximate or con- 

 tiguous, the metasternum forming a small and narrow, rather elon- 

 gate projection, the cephalic carinae fine but entire, the elytral apices 

 deeply sinuate externally and the hind tarsi very slender and filiform, 

 with the first joint much longer than in either Acrotona or Colpodnta 

 and fully one-half longer than the second, two to four subequal. 

 The sculpture of the body is fine. 



Ancillota sollemnis n. sp. Elongate-fusoid, convex, shining, piceous- 

 black, the elytra scarcely paler, the head and abdomen deep black, the 

 latter feebly pallescent apically, the legs pale piceo-flavate; punctures fine, 

 not close anteriorly, rather dense and asperate on the elytra, very fine and 

 close throughout the somewhat alutaceous abdomen, the pubescence fine, 

 rather abundant; head convex, not quite as long as wide, parallel at the 

 sides, the eyes but feebly convex, finely faceted and at their own length from 

 the base; antennae black, piceous and slender basally, gradually and strongly 

 incrassate and stout apically, the second joint much elongated, longer but 

 thinner than the first and longer than the third, the fourth scarcely thicker, 

 subparallel, slightly wider than long, the fifth rather abruptly wider, obtrap- 

 ezoidal, wider than long, the outer joints much wider than long, the last 

 subcylindric, very obtusely pointed, as long as the two preceding; prothorax 

 only about a third wider than long, convex, much rounded at base, the sides 

 moderately converging and broadly, subevenly arcuate from base to apex, 

 unimpressed, much wider than the head and as wide as the base of the elytra, 

 the latter large, only slightly transverse, with nearly straight and rather 

 strongly diverging sides, the suture nearly one-half longer than the prothorax; 

 abdomen slender, at base much narrower than the elytra, the sides straight 

 and very feebly converging to the fifth tergite, which is three-fourths as 

 wide as the first and fully one-half longer than the fourth. Length 1.85 mm. ; 

 width 0.55 mm. Missouri (St. Louis). 



The entire validity of the genus Ancillota is, of course, not to 

 meet with the common consent of systematists, and the only state- 

 ment to be made at present is, that if Acrotona and Colpodota are 

 genera, so also is Ancillota. I would be willing to concede Colpo- 



